Effects of an eight-week neuro-athletic training program on passing accuracy, shooting precision, flexibility, and isokinetic knee strength in male soccer players: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the effects of an eight-week neuro-athletic training (NAT) program, in addition to usual football training, on passing accuracy, shooting precision, flexibility, and isokinetic knee strength in competitive male soccer players. Design: Parallel-group, assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial with pre-test/post-test measurements. Setting: Outdoor synthetic football pitch in Balıkesir, Türkiye, during the 2023–2024 Turkish Regional Amateur League season. Methods: Fifty-six male soccer players (mean age 20.7 ± 1.8 years) competing in the Turkish Regional Amateur League were randomly allocated to a NAT group (n = 26) or a control group (n = 30) using computer-generated block randomization with concealed allocation (sealed opaque envelopes). Both groups continued their regular team training; the NAT group additionally performed three NAT sessions per week for eight weeks. Primary outcomes were passing accuracy and shooting precision, assessed with standardized field tests (Mor-Christian passing and shooting tests). Secondary outcomes were hamstring–lumbar flexibility (sit-and-reach test) and concentric isokinetic knee strength of the quadriceps and hamstrings at 60°/s and 180°/s, including hamstringto-quadriceps ratios, measured with an isokinetic dynamometer and normalized to body mass (Nm/kg). All assessments were performed at baseline and after eight weeks by an assessor blinded to group allocation. Results: Groups were comparable at baseline for age, anthropometric characteristics, training experience, and all performance measures (all p > 0.05). After eight weeks, the neuro-athletic training (NAT) group demonstrated significantly greater improvements than the control group in passing accuracy (9.25 ± 1.52 vs. 8.15 ± 1.69 points; ΔΔ = +0.75; p = 0.037; Cohen's d = 0.57; 95% CI [0.05, 1.45]), shooting precision (36.85 ± 8.24 vs. 29.77 ± 11.62 points; ΔΔ = +6.07; p = 0.007; d = 0.75; 95% CI [1.73, 10.41]), and sit-and-reach flexibility (30.12 ± 3.21 vs. 22.50 ± 2.12 cm; ΔΔ = +7.64; p < 0.001; d = 2.15; 95% CI [5.73, 9.55]). Isokinetic strength outcomes also favored the NAT group, with larger gains in quadriceps and hamstring peak torque at 60°/s (quadriceps ΔΔ = +40.18 N·m; p < 0.001; d = 1.75; 95% CI [28.21, 52.15]; hamstrings ΔΔ = +24.39 N·m; p < 0.001; d = 1.05; 95% CI [12.01, 36.77]) and in hamstring strength at 180°/s (ΔΔ = +5.18 N·m; p = 0.045; d = 0.55; 95% CI [0.12, 10.24]). Favorable changes were also observed in hamstring-to-quadriceps ratios at both velocities (60°/s: ΔΔ = +0.08; p = 0.025; 95% CI [0.01, 0.16]; 180°/s: ΔΔ = +0.09; p = 0.003; 95% CI [0.03, 0.14]). Conclusions: An eight-week neuro-athletic training program, added to regular football training, produced greater improvements in passing accuracy, shooting precision, flexibility, and isokinetic knee strength than standard training alone in competitive male soccer players. These findings support the integration of structured neuroathletic training into in-season performance programs.